Tension in Zimbabwe: tanks drive towards capital

harare - In Zimbabwe, unrest arose after the army threatened to intervene if the purifications within ZANU-PF government party did not stop. The leader of the youth wing of the president of Robert Mugabe's party warned the army leadership to undermine the constitution on Tuesday. Witnesses certainly said Tuesday that they had four tanks facing the capital of Harare.

The cause of the conflict is the resignation of Vice President Emmerson Mnangagwa, 75, who was previously seen as one of the favorites to follow the 93-year-old Mugabe. By his departure, President Grace seems to have the best cards to become president in the long term.

The 52-year-old Grace fits well with the powerful youth movement of the party, but is less popular among veterans of the Zimbabwean Independence War. Those warriors once enjoyed a privileged position within the ZANU-PF, but should increasingly depart.

The leader of the armed forces, Constantino Chiwenga, threatened on Monday that 'the army would not hesitate to intervene' to protect the revolution.